NEWSDenise Richards Went Public With Her Facelift After Aaron Phypers Mentioned It 'on Purpose' During Their Divorce Proceedings
Denise Richards went public with her facelift because her ex, Aaron Phypers, exposed the procedure during divorce court proceedings.
Oct. 16 2026, Published 3:54 p.m. ET
Denise Richards revealed she was forced to go public with her facelift after estranged husband Aaron Phypers spilled the beans during their divorce proceedings.
"My ex that I'm divorcing, he said something in court about it, on purpose, and I was so pleasantly surprised because there was media in there that they didn't print it, which was nice," the actress explained on "The Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg Show."
Richards opened up about her divorce from Phypers.
Richards Didn't Want to Give Phypers That Power
Richards chose to disclose the procedure herself, reclaiming her narrative and stripping her ex of the power to expose her.
The actress said she ultimately decided to speak about the procedure on her own terms.
"I figured, you know what, I think I just need to be honest and I want it, I didn't want to give him that power and have to say it then," she said.
Her Publicist Arranged an 'Allure' Feature
Denise Richards showcased her June 2025 multi-procedure facial surgery by sharing before-and-after photos in an 'Allure' feature.
Richards eventually chose a magazine interview to discuss the surgery.
"Four months later, my publicist got me a really nice piece in Allure, a piece on my facelift that I had done a year ago," she explained.
Published on March 20, 2026, the feature included before-and-after photos documenting her results. The actress underwent the facelift in June 2025 with Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Ben Talei.
The surgery included a deep-plane facelift, a temporal brow lift, upper eyelid surgery, a lip lift and fat grafting.
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Richards Was Unsure How People Would React
Denise Richards admitted she feared the public reaction but shared her surgery to praise her surgeon and promote transparency.
At first, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star was hesitant to spill the beans.
"I'm so glad that I've been open about it. I didn't know how people would react, but I think I want to know what everyone's doing, what's peptides, what this, what that," she explained. "And plus, I feel he did such a great job on me that I wanted to share the information."
She's Had Other Cosmetic Work Before
Denise Richards previously tried Botox and fillers.
The facelift was far from the actress' first brush with cosmetic procedures. During an August appearance on Bunnie Xo's "Dumb Blonde" podcast, Richards disclosed previously trying Botox and fillers.
In a 2025 interview, the former model revealed she had a b----- augmentation, a move she also chose to keep private.
"I had implants when I was 19 years old, and I never told anybody. I was so private about it for so many years...and then, finally, I admitted it on Howard Stern," she said. "He was the only one who ever really asked me."
